Side-by-Side Comparison
Optical Transceivers
SFP vs. SFP28
Comparing 2 standards across 12 specifications. 12 key differences identified.
Comparing:
SFP
SFP28
Small Form-Factor Pluggable (SFP, also known as mini-GBIC) is a hot-pluggable network interface transceiver standardized under INF-8074i / SFF-8074. Operating across a single electrical channel, it supports data rates up to 1.25 Gbps for Gigabit Ethernet and 4.25 Gbps for Fibre Channel using duplex LC optical interfaces or RJ45 copper.
SFP28 (25G Small Form-Factor Pluggable) is a transceiver standard defined under SFF-8402 and IEEE 802.3by. Using a single 25.78125 Gbps NRZ electrical lane within the standard SFP physical cage size, it provides high-density 25 Gigabit Ethernet and 32G Fibre Channel server-to-switch interconnects.
Specification Comparison Table
12 Parameters| Parameter / Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Standard / MSA
|
INF-8074i / SFF-8074 | SFF-8402 / SFF-8432 / IEEE 802.3by |
|
Physical Form Factor
|
SFP (Mini-GBIC) | SFP28 |
|
Electrical Channels
|
1-lane | 1-lane (25.78125 Gbps NRZ) |
|
Max Data Rate (Ethernet)
|
1.25 Gbps | 25.78125 Gbps |
|
Max Data Rate (Fibre Channel)
|
4.25 Gbps | 32 Gbps |
|
Optical Connector
|
Duplex LC (or RJ45 copper) | Duplex LC |
|
Hot Pluggable
|
Yes | — |
|
Typical Power Consumption
|
0.5–1.0 W | — |
|
Digital Diagnostics Monitoring
|
SFF-8472 (DOM / DDM optional) | — |
|
Direct Attach Copper (DAC)
|
— | Up to 3m passive (5m with RS-FEC) |
|
Forward Error Correction (FEC)
|
— | Clause 74 (BASE-R) / Clause 108 (RS-FEC) |
|
Backward Compatibility
|
— | SFP+ (10 Gbps) in multi-rate ports |